Argumentative Essay: Age Restrictions For Medical Marijuana

Marijuana has been one of the most controversial topics for many years, and still to this day, continues to be controversial. In 1996, California became the first state to allow medical use of marijuana by passing proposition 215. This proposition allows patients to use marijuana for medical purposes with a written consent from his or her doctor. Since proposition 215 has taken place, many other states have followed in California’s footsteps, allowing legalization of medical marijuana. Adding to that, some states have even gone as far as legalizing it for recreational purposes. The age restrictions for medical marijuana use both medically and recreationally can be tricky. For medical marijuana, I believe that there shouldn’t be an age restriction for the sole purpose that it is being used to help a

I think it’s important for marijuana to have an age restriction so it makes it easier to monitor and regulate. Regulation of marijuana is important because of the negative effects marijuana can have on a person that uses the drug medically or recreationally. With any medical treatment comes an expense, and a pricey one at that. Similar to other medications provided in treatment plans, medical marijuana has a history of providing relief for the treatment of Glaucoma, HIV Infection, Cancer, and Neurologic/movement disorders. A big concern with patients that have HIV is weight loss and a decrease in the amount of food eaten each day. Data has indicated that smoking marijuana has shown to increase appetite and food intake, which would help stimulate the amount a patient, consumes each day (Jane 541). Medical Marijuana and its positive effects towards chronic pain can also make a great impact on the patient’s treatment plan. When THC (the main chemical in marijuana) reaches the brain it binds two receptors known as CB 1 and CB 2. These brain receptors have an endogenous ligand known as,